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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Peanut Butter Sesame Granola Bars

Now that the weather is warmer and we can head outside to do more things I thought I would try and find a good homemade granola bar recipe to throw in the backpack for hikes/beach/etc.
They are even good for grab-and-go for breakfasts.

I do have a really yummy one that I have used for a few years but this one sounded even healthier than mine so I thought I would give it a whirl.

In a food processor, pulse the oats and coconut flakes until finely ground.
Remove to a bowl. Then pulse the peanuts and cashews until roughly chopped. Add
to oatmeal/coconut mixture. Stir in sunflower seeds and flax.

Toast sesame seeds in a skillet over medium heat. Keep a close eye on them,
stirring often, and remove to oat mixture when they turn blonde.
Add the
peanut butter and maple syrup to the skillet and heat until runny and well combined
(just a few seconds). Stir into oat mixture until well combined.
Press
into prepared baking dish. Store in fridge.

I used a 9 X9 pan.

According to the blog I got this from - Life and running in Iowa - if you cut the bars into 16 pieces then it is 184 calories per bar. Not too shabby.

These are super simple to throw together, you don't have to heat up the oven - which is a huge plus in the summer - and are super delicious.

Both of the granola bar recipes look really yummy. Can't wait to do my own taste test :)I'm not a fan of coconut. Can these recipes be made without? Would you add something in its place or up the oatmeal a little?Thanks for any help on that.

Just made these and they were delicious! I didn't have any coconut home so I left that out. I also used 1/2 of peanuts instead of cashews and the honey, not maple syrup. I'm making another batch to send to my sister who can't have gluten. Yum!

I "stumbled" across this recipe and it sounds DIVINE and right up my alley. Wondering...to add to the sesame seeds, would you recommend tahini in place of PB at all, or no? Maybe too overpowering? I do like the idea of honey instead of sugary syrup. I also assume you can change up the nuts? My hubby can't eat cashews but we love almonds! Thanks so much. I want to try this recipe out NOW!!!